Tobacco and Health

• Smoking decreases your lifespan
• Smoking affects your health and those around you
• Smoking causes cancer, heart-disease, and emphysema

Cigarette smoking is the single most preventable cause of death in the United States-- it is responsible for nearly one in five deaths in the United States. Although smoking in adults has dropped from 42% in 1965 to 26% in 1994 (see table below), an estimated 48 million Americans (25 million men and 22.7 million women) are current smokers. Smoking at a younger age is strongly associated with developing a long-term nicotine addiction. Among the 80% of adults who ever smoked, more than half were smoking regularly by age 18. Currently, of adults age 50 or older, one in five are smokers. Older smokers usually smoke more cigarettes than younger people and are more likely to smoke the high nicotine brands they started smoking earlier in life.

Smoking decreases your lifespan

Cigarette smoking decreases life expectancy by about 5 to 8 years and is a major risk factor for four (i.e., heart disease, stroke, cancer, and pneumonia/influenza) of the five leading causes of death in older persons. About half of all smokers die prematurely-- half of these die between the ages of 35-69 which means they lose an average of 20 to 25 years of life expectancy (American Cancer Society, 1998). Click the link "Check Your Smoking I.Q." to test your knowledge of older smokers.

Smoking affects your health and those around you

Generally smokers have few symptoms of disease and reduced lung function until widespread, irreversible damage has been done. However, smokers do have more frequent and severe respiratory infections, chronic cough, and phlegm production. Non-smokers who are around smokers are at increased risk for lung cancer, respiratory disease, and cardiovascular problems from second-hand smoke.

Smoking causes cancer, heart-disease, and emphysema

Smoking accounts for one in three (29%) of all cancer deaths in the United States and is responsible for about 83% of all lung cancers. The mortality rate from lung cancer is 23 times higher among male smokers and 13 times higher among female smokers compared to those who have never smoked. Smoking is also a major cause of cancers of the mouth, larynx, esophagus, kidney, bladder, and pancreas. It is a major cause of heart disease; cigarette smokers of all ages have a 70% greater chance of dying from heart disease than nonsmokers. Smoking is also the major cause of progressive pulmonary diseases (i.e. emphysema, chronic bronchitis). Older male smokers are nearly twice as likely to die from stroke as their peers who do not smoke; the odds are nearly as high for older female smokers.

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